TURA:
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Tuesday informed that the state produces Rs 400 crore worth of jackfruits annually and if leveraged in the right earnest will ensure socio-economic development of the people.
The chief minister while inaugurating the Jackfruit Mela at SMELC, Dakopgre, Tura, also said that Meghalaya has the potential to develop jackfruit into a Rs1000-crore industry which would directly benefit 50,000 farmer families.
Sangma added that the Garo Hills region due to its tropical climatic conditions is conducive for jackfruit plantation and farmers from the region must take advantage of the different programmes initiated by the government under the Jackfruit Mission and leverage their business and avail all assistance from the concerned department.
He informed that in the past four years the government had made various interventions for the farmers and the Jackfruit Mission has led to the production of different value-added jackfruit products.
He also visited the stalls that have been set up by various self help groups (SHGs) and jackfruit entrepreneurs of the Garo Hills region.
The inauguration programme was organised by the District Horticulture Office, West Garo Hills in collaboration with the Directorate of Food Processing. Mission Jackfruit was launched in 2018 as a five-year programme and is being implemented under the Directorate of Food Processing.
This mission helps to catalyse and promote sustainable rural and urban livelihoods, assist the beneficiaries through establishment of small scale and nano enterprises, creation of a value chain for jackfruit products and generate employment opportunities along the value chain for unemployed youth, protect and preserve catchment areas, provide an additional source of income for rural and urban families through the commercialisation of its processing and value addition, developing the markets for jackfruit and its value added products through a focused and professional go to market and field to fork strategy.
Cheques distributed among farmers
Later in the day the chief minister also gave cheques worth Rs 92,60,000 to 161 farmer producer groups at Rangsakona in South Garo Hills as part of the focus programme.
Farmers’ Collectivisation for Upscaling of Production and Marketing Systems (FOCUS) is flagship programme of the government aimed at increasing production, improve productivity, facilitate credit linkages and strengthen access to markets for the producers engaged in activities such farming, livestock rearing and related activities.
Sangma said that FOCUS is one of the largest farmers welfare programme in the entire North East aimed at upscaling farming and income generation activities of farmers of the state.
“In the past two years a lot of hardships were faced by our farmers due to Covid. This programme was conceptualised by the government to give financial assistance to the farmers and at the same time cushion the economic impact of the pandemic on the farming community of the state,” he said while exhorting the farmers to form producer groups to vail the scheme.
He said that FOCUS programme is envisaged to benefit 4.5 lakh farmers of the State while also informing that 2.5 lakh farmers have already availed the scheme.